Chinese word

恼羞成怒

Pronunciation

Pinyinnǎo xiū chéng nù

Meaning

  • idiomget angry out of embarrassment

Example

他当众被嘲笑，恼羞成怒，把杯子摔了。tā dāng zhòng bèi cháo xiào nǎo xiū chéng nù bǎ bēi zi shuāi le

He was mocked in public, got angry out of embarrassment, and smashed the cup.

Illustration for 恼羞成怒 (get angry out of embarrassment)

More examples

在家人面前被揭短后，他恼羞成怒，摔门而去。zài jiā rén miàn qián bèi jiē duǎn hòu tā nǎo xiū chéng nù shuāi mén ér qù

After his shortcomings were exposed in front of his family, he got angry out of embarrassment, slammed the door, and left.

Core concept

A loss of face turns inner shame into an outward burst of anger.

Common phrases

  • 当众恼羞成怒dāng zhòng nǎo xiū chéng nù

    lose one's temper from embarrassment in public

  • 恼羞成怒地反击nǎo xiū chéng nù dì fǎn jī

    fight back angrily after being embarrassed

  • 恼羞成怒的举动nǎo xiū chéng nù de jǔ dòng

    an action taken in embarrassed anger

Similar words

勃然大怒bó rán dà nù: A sudden and very fierce outburst of anger.
大发雷霆dà fā léi tíng: An extremely fierce outburst of anger, often shown loudly.
暴跳如雷bào tiào rú léi: Wild, thunderous anger shown through shouting and forceful movements.
怒发冲冠nù fà chōng guān: Fury so intense that one's hair seems to stand on end.

Definition in Chinese

脸面受损或被当众羞辱后，由羞愧转为激烈愤怒的状态。liǎn miàn shòu sǔn huò bèi dāng zhòng xiū rǔ hòu yóu xiū kuì zhuǎn wéi jī liè fèn nù de zhuàng tài

Word origin

恼 (nǎo, "distress") + 羞 (xiū, "shame") + 成 (chéng, "become") + 怒 (nù, "anger") presents shame changing into anger.

Usage tips

  • The idiom commonly follows a clause naming the embarrassing trigger, so everyday sentences can show the trigger before the person's reaction.

Other meanings

  • get angry after losing faceidiom

Opposites

  • 心平气和xīn píng qì hécalm and even-temperedidiom

Word lists with this word